Stay With Me
by Reda
Summary: /GoChi/ Early in their marriage, Goku gets a fever. Chi-Chi takes care of him. /Request from Tumblr/


**Author Notes:** Wrote this for a tumblr request a ways back. (Since I still owe a chapter for the HS fic and it's taking forever, I - uh - here.)

 **Pairing:** Goku x Chi-Chi

 **Words:** 1,792

~!~

Washing dishes after breakfast while Gohan cried in his highchair, Chi-Chi thought nothing of the distinct lack of a dish pile in front of her. Her focus was on the wailing toddler demanding attention. Well, no, her focus was on the (rather small) pile of dishes. She was actually attempting to ignore the boy for now. He had to learn eventually that crying wouldn't get him everything he wanted. Of course, Goku was most likely going to get up from his seat any minute and give their baby boy the attention he craved. Goku always gave in to the boy. No matter how hard she tried, Chi-Chi was going to quickly become the villain between the two of them since Goku didn't show a single interest in discipline.

A loud crash of a hand slamming on a surface, and Chi-Chi jolted at the sound, surprised to hear Goku's voice snap into the silence. "Stop crying, Gohan!"

Setting a bowl of half eaten food to the side to clean later, Chi-Chi spun around, eyes wide as she watched Goku grumble and hide his face in his arms, which were crossed on the table in front of him. Gohan was just as shocked, apparently, staring at his father with confused, wide eyes as well, though he _had_ stopped crying. Chi-Chi wasn't sure how long it would last. Babies were fickle, impossible to predict, even more so when it came to their son.

Still…

Hearing Goku raise his voice in any capacity was rare. Unheard of, almost. Usually her husband just tried to make Gohan laugh in order to stop his tears. And with a beaming personality like his, it wasn't ever a difficult chore.

So why…

As she walked over to stand by her husband, Chi-Chi noticed a few other things that were out of sorts. For one, Goku was still dressed in his casual at-home-relaxing attire: his tank and sweatpants. By this time, he was usually dressed for his early morning workout. Whether or not Chi-Chi woke up first to make breakfast, Goku was always out the door before the food was ready, insisting on some exercise before he stuffed himself. Depending on his mood after _that_ determined whether or not he stayed in his _gi_ or switched back into his casual wear. But the latter was still pretty rare for breakfast time.

Another oddity was in how he was curled up against the table, his face buried deep in his crossed arms. Or how there _hadn't_ been a pile of dishes to wash from him. Come to think of it, Chi-Chi recalled eating all of her own food so the half empty bowl in the sink had to have come from…

"Goku," she frowned as she set a tentative hand on his head. "Are you feeling all right?"

"Hnn."

Such a lack of an answer was answer enough. She blinked and then let her fingers make gentle massaging motions against his scalp. "Does that feel good?"

"Hnn."

Again, not much of an answer, though there was a grateful sounding tone to his mumbled non-response. She clicked her tongue between her teeth. The possibility of Goku having a headache, of actually getting sick, had never dawned on her. He was impervious to so much, withstanding all kinds of abuse in a fighting match; so strong and tough and the last person she expected to see weakened by a common illness.

"Goku," she said softly. "If you aren't feeling well, you should probably go lay down in bed."

"Huh?"

He lifted his head from the table, blinking slowly as he turned to face her. Seeing that his face looked a little flushed, Chi-Chi touched the back of her hand to first one cheek then the other on an instinct. Although his face did feel a little warmer than normal, it was hard to judge if he had a fever or not, and she bit her lip as his eyes stared back at her, half open and confused.

Before he could comment on her actions, she pushed his bangs back and landed a small kiss on his forehead. "You're probably feeling sick, so trust me. Go lay down in bed and I'll be in there once I set Gohan up in his room."

She could almost see the words slowly processing in his mind as his eyes flickered back and forth. Maybe he was debating what she said. Maybe being sick was a new concept for him, too. Either way, Goku didn't really seem to be himself and after a moment he slowly got his feet and pulled her into an embrace, half leaning on her as his face dipped down far enough to rest in the crook of her neck.

"All right," he murmured. "Sleep sounds nice right now anyways, even if I did just wake up."

Patting his hair at the back of his head, Chi-Chi tried to keep the worry out of her voice. Sickness like this was normal; it happened and it was easily cured, sometimes with just a little rest until the body could take care of itself given enough time. Still, Goku had never acted sick before, and the concept did seem rather new to him, so she had to wonder where or when he had caught the bug. And if it was contagious. Not so much because she was worried about herself, but her son was still young enough for little fevers to lead to actual problems. Best to keep Gohan back, even if that meant holing him up in his crib for a while.

"Goku," she whispered. "Go to bed."

His whine was near immediate, shaking his head against her shoulder. "Don't want to; this feels nice."

"The bed will feel better," she said, rubbing his back. "Trust me. Go on."

Goku groaned in response, but thankfully he didn't fight it for much longer, pulling away eventually to make his way to the bedroom. His slow pace caused her to frown as she watched him disappear down the hallway, but she quickly found her attention stolen by a certain bored little baby. As Gohan babbled the few words he knew, repeating "Dada" constantly as if knowing something was wrong, Chi-Chi focused on cleaning up the breakfast, gathering a few things to take back to Goku when she finished in here, and then setting Gohan up in his crib with a nice collection of toys to keep him occupied.

Once she was sure Gohan would be fine on his own for a while, Chi-Chi made her way to the bedroom. She opened the door to find Goku still in his tank and sweatpants, laying on his stomach on the bed with his head buried underneath the pillow. Most definitely a fever if it was bothering him this much.

"Goku," she said as she walked up to the side of the bed. "Goku, sweetheart."

"Hnn."

With a frown, Chi-Chi took the pill bottle, glass of water, and wet rag she had grabbed earlier and set them off to the side. Then, sitting on the edge of the bed, she rubbed at his back, making little circles in a soothing motion. Even his back was hot. He really was burning up, though his soft sighs told her how much he appreciated her little gesture.

"Goku, I need you to sit up for me." A whine met her request but she pushed on. "I have some medicine that'll help. Come on."

He whined again, but this time he did as she asked. Sitting up on his knees, he stared over at her, his eyes drooping in an effort not to close. "Chi-Chi, I don't feel good."

"I know," she said, reaching for the medicine, pouring out a few pills, and then holding them out to him. "Here. Swallow these. It should help."

As soon as he took the medicine, she offered the glass of water, which he drank down gratefully. After he handed the empty glass back to her, his hands went to his lap, his head hanging as he stared at the bed. She frowned, aching inside to see him feeling so awful, so unlike himself.

"All right, sweetheart," she said, patting at the bed. "Go ahead and lay down again. Just sleep the day away, okay? You should feel better eventually."

With a small groan, Goku did as she said, plopping his face back into the pillow and sighing even as he turned his head so he could face her. "Stay with me? My grandpa always sat next to me and rubbed my head when I was sick."

So he _had_ been sick before. Offering a smile, Chi-Chi reached over to massage his head, scratching lightly at his scalp as she ran her fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes and hummed in appreciation. After a few minutes of this, she took the wet cloth and set it on the back of his neck. Since he wanted to sleep on his stomach and bury his head in the pillows, she didn't want to force him to roll over just so she could put something cool on his burning forehead. Besides, his neck was hot, too.

Goku gave a small sigh as he whispered. "...feels nice."

"Shh," she murmured back. "Sleep, sweetheart. I'll stay as long as I can. Gohan's an easy baby; he shouldn't need me for a while yet. So don't worry. Just rest."

Petting his head as gently as she could, Chi-Chi watched him until his breathing evened out. She softly hummed a tune under her breath, one she often used to help Gohan fall asleep, and was rewarded with a small smile as Goku drifted off to sleep himself. Even once he did fall into a restful slumber, she stayed by his side like she had promised. Gohan's needs – and her own – had to be met, of course, but she stayed with him as often as she could, trying not to worry as she waited for his fever to break, which it finally did a little beforehand dinner time. Just in time for him to wake up and grumble about being hungry. A sure sign that everything was back to normal.

When it was clear he was feeling better, she kissed his cheek and nudged his shoulder. "Now, if I get sick, it's your turn to take care of me."

His frown was immediate as he rolled over in the bed. "Don't get sick, Chi-Chi."

Shaking her head, she laughed, and then kissed him again. Only this time, he turned his head so she caught his lips, and then he pulled her down and held her there to make sure it lasted longer. Her final reassurance that he was definitely feeling a lot better now.


End file.
